“The events we participate in often fall on the shoulders of a few people,” she adds. “I truly admire the persistence and pride of our B.C. Mongolian Community leaders.”

A hearty celebration

Batdorj notes that the Tsagaan Sar is a celebration of the first new moon following the winter solstice. Like many other cultures, the Mongolian community determines the exact dates using their own traditional calendar. This unique calendar means that the holiday falls on a different date every year.

“We use a lunar cycle, and instead of a century we use a 60 years cycle,” explains Batdorj.

While it is sometimes celebrated on the same date as other countries’ lunar new year, this year’s calendar places the holiday on a completely different date. For Batdorj, the local Mongolian disapora’s small numbers means that organizing celebrations requires dedication and strong will.

“Our B.C. Mongolian community always makes an effort to join the Lunar New Year events here in Vancouver,” she adds.

During Tsagaan Sar, Mongolians share hearty meals with loved ones, preserving their culture and traditions. And for this Lunar New Year, the community will gather to find ingredients and prepare the dishes traditionally eaten during the celebrations, including buuz, mouth-watering Mongolian dumplings, or Shiniin Idee, a towering dessert made of biscuits, curd and other sweets.

“Mongolian cuisine is simple, likely due to our ancestors being nomads,” explains the doctoral candidate. “While recipes here can have dozens of ingredients, which is amazing, Mongolian cuisine is straightforward and hearty.”

To prepare traditional buuz, only a few ingredients are necessary: good meat, good flour, onions, salt and pepper – as well as loved ones to share the dish. As for other dishes, Batdorj notes that aaruul or dried curd is difficult to locate in Vancouver, but the community always has a member who makes it and shares with others.

“Now, being in Canada, we like to get fancy and add different veggies to our buuz, like spinach, with my favorite being the courgette,” she adds.

An active community

For Batdorj, the holiday brings back warm memories of large family gatherings, particularly those that involve making buuz before the new year. Growing up as one of five children, she recalls how each member had a role and the fun of eating while cooking buuz.

“My memories of making buuz with my family before Tsagaan Sar are very dear to me,” she recalls. “Both my mom and dad are the eldest children, which means that their siblings and their families would come and pay their respects.”

Batdorj now misses these close family gatherings – a longing that reflects the importance of finding support within the diaspora. While small in numbers, the B.C. Mongolian community is very active. From Mongolian businesses, including cashmere shops and construction companies, to a women’s hiking club and other running clubs, the community actively participates in the dynamism of the city.

“Our community members run the Sun Run and big marathons,” Batdorj shares. “For a community of our size, I am always amazed at the number of people who are participating in these runs.”

She also expresses her gratitude for the people at UBC supporting her academic endeavours. As a researcher of mining developments, being in Vancouver means that she is amid the global mining discussions.

“Being from Mongolia originally, the Indigenous relations, values, and reconciliation efforts in Canada are extremely important to me,” she adds. “Mongolians are deeply connected to their land, so I am paying close attention to these developments.”

For more information on the B.C. Mongolian Community, see www.facebook.com/bcmongolian

For more information on Bulgan Batdorj, see www.ires.ubc.ca/bulgan-batdorj